Minneapolis Police: One Man Released, 2 Others Turn Themselves in over

Under a bright sky Tuesday, Alexander Clark, who said he was related to Jamar Clark, addressed the crowd, giving his account of Monday night’s shooting.

In brief press statements Tuesday, police noted they had arrested a 23-year-old man in Bloomington about 11:20 a.m., and, less than an hour later, a 32 year old Hispanic male in his vehicle in South Minneapolis. Police said officers are still searching for other suspects in the shooting outside the city’s 4th Precinct. Police have disputed that.

None of the injuries in the Monday shooting were life-threatening and the wounded were taken to local hospitals. They have been holding vigils outside of the Minneapolis Fourth Precinct police station since Clark encountered officers Mark Ringgenberg and Dustin Schwarze on November 15. The protests have continued amid questions over whether Clark was handcuffed when he was shot, which police have denied, and demands from protesters that authorities release videos of the incident.

Oluchi Omeoga witnessed the shooting and said a handful of protesters followed three men in masks to a street corner, where the men pulled out weapons and began firing.

The witness said a demonstrator came out of the crowd and punched one of the white men, and another man stepped back and reached toward his waistband. “I know there’s a lot of speculation as to who these people were”, said US Representative Keith Ellison, an African-American whose district includes most of Minneapolis.

It’s not clear whether the two men in the video are connected to Monday’s shooting, and it’s not clear how Black Lives Matter obtained that video. However, three suspects with unknown ties have been arrested in connection with the shooting with one suspect held and released.

Psychotherapist Felicia Washington Sy has also joined the protests after the shooting incident.

Hennepin County prosecutors will present the Clark shooting case to a grand jury for consideration of criminal charges when the investigation is complete, a spokesman said. Dozens of officers tended to victims, but the suspects fled.

The 27-year-old St. Paul man said, “Somebody told me they wanted white allies so I came down”. One witness, who preferred to remain anonymous, said, “About midway down the block the group sort of thinned out and I said, ‘Maybe we should turn around, not make them feel like we’re all up on them, ‘ and the minute I turned around I heard four shots”.

“Thank you to the community for the incredible support you have shown for our family in this hard time”.

Black Lives Matter had previously planned to announce “next steps” on Tuesday morning after a weekend strategy meeting with community members. “The Minneapolis chapter of the NAACP responded by renewing calls for the video to be released, arguing in a statement that the governor’s remarks had reinforced ‘the public’s need to see the videotape for themselves and to draw their own conclusions, rather than relying upon the perspective of one government official who is not a trained expert in this field'”.

As protests gained strength last week, Minneapolis Mayor Betsy Hodges also asked the Justice Department to open a federal civil rights investigation into the shooting.

Protesters have rallied nightly outside the 4th Precinct police station near the scene of his death.